Are we going to try a new band for the “challenge” in 2014 looking at some of the percentage of QSO per band 15m or 17m seem to be lacking in contacts made on those bands. I suggest 15m that way most activators will have a 40m dipole they could use and its open to all class of licence in VK at least . Just a thought the 12m challenge was very successful looking at the percentage of QSO’s made. happy new year 73 de Ian VK5CZ …
In reply to VK5CZ:
30 meter would be a good choice.
Good luck, Tonnie PA9CW
In reply to VK5CZ:
the 12m challenge is not over yet … it runs from June 1st 2013 to May 31st 2014.
merry xmas and 73 de martin
www.oe5reo.at
In reply to PA9CW:
In reply to VK5CZ:
30 meter would be a good choice.
Good luck, Tonnie PA9CW
Most emphatically NOT if you are one of the 965 activators operating on SSB in 2013! What you are suggesting is a challenge which excludes phone operators.
HC
Brian G8ADD
In reply to G8ADD:
Data?
In reply to G3CWI:
Que?
HC
Brian G8ADD
In reply to PA9CW:
Might I suggest 60m? or even 4m?
Any of the above, all suggestions have merit.
Or how about a year off and leave the next Challenge until June 2015?
Tom M1EYP
In reply to G1INK:
4m would be good, it’s a great band with very little SOTA activity.
Festive 73 de Mick M0MDA
First of all, Hppy Xmas and happy 2014 to all!
Then, I must recognize that I share the love of Tonnie PA0CW for the 30m band, but I think there are enough Activators/Chasers to encourage this band activity. By the other hand - and as it’s already said- it might be a SSB/CW band…
So, why not 17m band? My reasons:
- There are few activators (from SOTA stats)
- It’s not too high (short) band.
- The antennas are not too big.
- The propagation would favor not only EU qsos but DX ones as well.
- SSB/CW Band (not all of us have portable keyers…)
Finally, I understand Tom 
but I think that these special challenges make more interesting the SOTA activity (not for me, as a newbie , but for those old and tired man that would need some “carrots” to keep on going thru the mountains carrying their heavy and old radios)
73 de Mikel!
In reply to M0MDA:
I have no problems with people discussing the kind of challenges they would like to see. There is one “however” that needs to be paramount in the challenge and that is inclusiveness.
The challenge frequencies and modes have to be available worldwide and to all skill levels. That discounts CW only bands or frequencies like 4m from an official challenge. There is no reason why you can’t have an independently run challenge on those bands though. I shamelessly stole the idea for a challenge from Richard and Aage’s PP3 challenge as I saw how much fun they were having along with Colin M1BUU. The challenge itself forced CW and home brew to the front if you wanted to stand any chance of wining. If our 12m challenge had not been open to all I doubt it would have been a hundredth as popular as it has been. The activity levels have wildly surpassed my expectations.
Like Tom says, we may have a year out after the 12m challenge finishes. This is simply to allow operation to return to a normal distribution of frequencies etc. We’ll also be well on to the down swing of the solar cycle.
Andy
MM0FMF
In reply to everyone
WOW Just A thought folks stay cool …
In reply to MM0FMF:
Andy et Tom,
Nothing to add, I think so too.
73 es HNY,
Heinz HB9BCB
In reply to EA2CW:
I like the idea of 17m, Mikel, it has the advantage that it is less dependent on solar activity than 12m - though I don’t think activity will drop off as fast as Andy thinks - and it could do with a bit of a SOTA boost! OTOH 12m does benefit from Es in season. Why not extend the 12 m challenge for another year?
HC
Brian G8ADD
In answer to your last question Brian, simply because that would make a mockery of the end date declared before the start of the Challenge!
Tom M1EYP
In reply to MM0FMF:
Hi Andy,
I understand the reason for not having a 4m challenge and yes I think a year off would be good.
I for one have really enjoyed the 12m challenge so far and I look forward to many more 12m QSOs. I had not worked any SOTA DX until the challenge started and I now have a few VK and stateside contacts in the log.
I look forward to the next challenge, if it happens, whatever band it may be.
Merry Christmas and a happy new year to all.
73 de Mick M0MDA
In reply to VK5CZ:
WOW Just A thought folks stay cool …
Oh, that’s it, rub it in! Just because it’s freezing cold here with 80 mph winds whilst you no doubt bask in glorious heat!
Merry Christmas by the way.
Oh, nearly forgot, I’m with you on 15m. I don’t have 12m so have been using 15m as my own little challenge. As you mention, it’s an ideal band to go with a 40m antenna. You can work locals on 40 then switch to 15 for some dx. I’m working on WAS just on 15m.
73,
Ian mm0gyx
In reply to VK5CZ: How about a real challenge for a really neglected band, like Six Meters? Maybe a short sprint contest…May thru June only…coinciding with the summer ES season? That time of year would also be hot for 12M on ES, so both could end on the same date.
Merry Christmas!
73
Pete
WA7JTM
In reply to MM0FMF:
I figure challenges at VHF and higher might be better organised at a regional level, perhaps? Even six and four metres are far from universally available. (Here in Kenya neither 6 metres nor 4 metres are available at all, and in Australia 4 metres is not available, and 6 metres is restricted).
It’s quite hard to be completely inclusive; even the 12 metre challenge excluded a fair number of potential participants. For instance, it’s only available to advanced licence holders in VK (and the same applies to 17 and 30 metres).
It might be interesting to try a DX challenge, perhaps, with no specific band, but requiring contacts to be at least 3000km (or whatever, by short-path calculation) for HF, and at least 1000km (or whatever) for VHF? (Of course, the database may not have the fields to make this practical…) It would, however, likely favour chasers with big antennas, I guess…
…or how about a power related challenge (though that would require an extra information exchange, so might be even less practical from a database point of view)?
73, Rick M0LEP (at present in 5Z, thoroughly over-fed…)
In reply to WA7JTM:
Pete, I love 6m with 148 dxcc worked, however June is only the summer Es season in the northern hemisphere so I don’t think our VK/ZS (etc) friends would be too impressed with your idea. That’s why whichever band is chosen for the challenge should be for a full year.
73 from a full of roast duck g1ink. Wow this vintage cava is good!